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~February is National Children's Dental Health Month~

SF Dental Hygiene Society stands behind the children of San Francisco by getting them off to the right start!

Volunteer for Give Kids a Smile Day events!

Help us save some angels' smiles!

• February 3rd, 2012 at Southeast Health Center
(shifts from 8:30-3 pm)
• February 9th, 2012 at SF General Hospital
(shifts from 9-3 pm)

Provide dental screenings, fluoride varnish and oral health education to
parents and earn
2 CEUs!

Training includes Didactic and Practicum
Call to sign up for a shift!
415-575-5719

OR go on-line to

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AmOx2uVeW1RKdFlXVnM1aU9JS2pBQnByeWdoV3lGc3c

1. There are 2 sheets; Choose which Day you want (or which sheet) The tabs
are at the bottom left of the screen.
2. Be sure to save or your entry will be lost. Click File tab (upper)
left and save like in other MS programs.

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SF Hygiene Society in Service to our Community

Kanistha Caitlyn Shah, RDH, BS volunteers at the Mission Neighborhood
Health Center, in the SF Dental Hygiene Society "Adopt-a-Clinic" Project,
on a monthly basis, where she teaches new parents about good oral hygiene
and screens toddlers. She also places fluoride varnish to protect their
new teeth. She has recently been spotted volunteering for the SF DPH
Child Care Health Project during her free time, screening and placing
fluoride varnish on preschoolers at the True Sunshine Preschool on January
11, 2012 where she helped screen forty 3-5 year olds. (38% untreated dental
decay)

Volunteer hygienists make a huge difference in the health of children who
would not otherwise get this free preventive dental treatment. One annual
application of fluoride varnish cuts the risk of developing dental decay
by 45-50%. A child who receives 2 annual applications of FV, is 4 times
less likely to develop decay than a peer who did not receive the fluoride
treatment*.

If you would like to volunteer to work with underserved
children, please call 575-5719 or email margaret.fisher@sfdph.org

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Mission Neighborhood Health Center

On Going Monthly Oral Health Screening at two Mission Neighborhood locations. Monthly oral health clinic for new parents at Mission Neighborhood Health Center; includes a dental screening, by an RDH, fluoride varnish application and home care information with free toothbrush etc. Funded by America Academy of Pediatrics - CATCH and ADHA Institute for Oral Health / Wrigley Foundation grants.

Volunteer days are the 4th Wednesday of every month from 1:30pm to 4:30pm at MNHC Shotwell location and the 2nd Friday of every month from 9:00am to 12:00pm at the Valencia St location.

Volunteer stipend: $35/hour for 4.5 hours.
TC Robbins, SF Dept of Public Health
mchamericorps.dph@sfdph.org
(415) 575-5713 

RAM California

Cathy DiFrancesco RDH ~ Michael Long RDH ~ Heidi Christopher RDH
Hygiene Coordinators ~ RAM 2012
Registration is Now Open! The following California RAM Expeditions are now available for volunteer registration on our website: http://www.ram-ca.org/

March 22nd through 25th 2012 – Oakland Coliseum – East Side Building
March 30th through April 2nd 2012 – Cal Expo – Building C and D

There is an incredible need for all licensed dental professionals during this event and all
are welcome to volunteer. However, our task at hand is to ensure forty hygiene chairs for
all eight days from 6am to 6pm are filled. We need 84 hygienists each day for all eight days.

A total of 672! Both clinical and non-clinical hygienists play valuable roles. Your
knowledge and passion for patient advocacy are essential and needed to make RAM dental services successful.

We received lots of feedback from last year’s volunteers, and thank you again for your ideas and suggestions. With your continual input RAM 2012 and future California Expeditions will surely develop and improve.

Lunch will be provided and we will work together to ensure you are able to take breaks
during the day as needed. Volunteers sign-up for the entire day and it is important that you arrive on time for orientation. If by chance you cannot stay the entire day please make that notation in the “comment” box as you register on-line and we will contact you.

This event has been life-changing for many of us! Under-served and uninsured members of our community wait in line for days in hopes of receiving services. We are hugged, some cry with tears of joy and all leave thankful and smiling. Last year our Oakland team found 3 cases of oral cancer! You won’t be the same when you leave.
We thank you in advance for your contributions and the impact you will have on the
underserved.

Feel free to contact any of us with your questions and comments.

Your RAM Dental Hygiene Team Leaders,
Cathy DiFrancesco RDH cathyrdh@gmail.com
Michael Long RDH monterioman@yahoo.com
Heidi Christopher RDH heidichristopher.tdh@gmail.com

 

On Oct. 1st, 2011, the SF Dental Hygiene Society provided volunteers at the San Francisco CHDP Foster Care Health & Wellness Fair at St. Mary's Recreation Center in SF, We provided 20 Foster Care Children (and also their guardians) with dental screening & fluoride varnish (for the kids), guardian oral health education and distributed toothbrushes and toothpaste to all. Fair participants had fun, guessing how much sugar was in Coke vs. Juice, throwing fluoride Velcro toothpaste balls at a giant felt mouth, and other health related activities. There were nurses and nursing
students taking Blood Pressure, doing Diabetes checks and taking height and weight measurements. There was also great food and a fire truck for the kids to climb into! Over 60 people attended the fair!

Our fabulous Dental Hygiene Volunteers for the day, sharing the importance of oral health, were:

Fivel Muntian, RDH
Ashlee Trueb, RDH
Karina Pereira, RDH
Nora Yamada, RDH
Katy Allen, RDH

Thanks for starting off National Dental Hygiene Month with a BANG!!! Our next Community Dental Health event. is on Oct. 11th at Kai Ming HeadStart in SF. Call us if you would like to help teach student nurses how to screen for dental decay! SF Dental Hygienists Rock!!!

Sincerely,

Margaret Fisher, R.D.H.A.P., B.S.
(415) 575-5719

Dear SF Dental Volunteers:

We had a fun and crazy time providing dental screening, education and
fluoride varnish this afternoon at Wu Yee Chinatown HeadStart Preschool!!
Once again I was surrounded by amazing and talented dental hygienists
providing flexible care and accommodating education to parents of entering
preschoolers ( mostly age 3 ). (mostly via translators provided by Wu
Yee!)

Though our participation came as a response to a last minute request to
provide this screening, three of you jumped in to save the day!! and do
some great work!!

Marina Trubnikova, RDH
Michael Long, RDH
Nikita Yefimova, RDH

Together they screened 27 children and placed fluoride varnish on most of
them. (Embedded image moved to file: pic21878.gif)michael long with SFSU
Kiwanis Volunteer and preschooler

Thank you very much for volunteering at the last minute to help out one of
SF's greatest positive forces ~ our preschools!!!
Working together with individuals such as yourselves ~ anything is
possible!

Thank you for a great afternoon!!! Wishing you all a relaxing, and fun
weekend!!!

Sincerely,

Margaret Fisher, R.D.H.A.P., B.S.
Oral Health Consultant
CHDP Child Health & Disability Prevention Program
City and County of San Francisco
Department of Public Health
30 Van Ness Avenue, Suite 210
San Francisco, CA 94102
(415) 575-5719
(415) 558-5905 FAX
email: margaret.fisher@sfdph.org

 

SF Dental Hygiene Society - Adopts a Community Health Center -
Mission Neighborhood Health Center

Dear SF Dental Hygiene Volunteers:

San Francisco Dental Hygiene Society has adopted Mission Neighborhood Health Center which has 3 clinics in the city. MNHC serves primarily low-income immigrant families who are working hard to have a better life for their families.

Every month (on the second Friday and on the 4th Weds. of the month) some of our hygienists go out to the clinics (One on Shotwell and 16th Street, and one near Caesar Chavez and Valencia St.) to volunteer for 3-4 hours to provide dental screening, parent education and fluoride varnish on children age 1 to 2 years old.

We have a Spanish language assistant to help with the paperwork and translation. All you have to do is show up. If you might like to volunteer, we need you! You get great experience, meet interesting people, and have fun, while you help make a lifelong difference in a young child's health.

Because it is a medical clinic, they do require a volunteer application to be completed in advance. Please call me if you have any questions.

Thanks for all you do!

Sincerely,

Margaret Fisher, R.D.H.A.P., B.S.
(415) 575-5719
margaret.fisher@sfdph.org

 

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED FOR TWO UPCOMING DENTAL SCREENINGS

Click Here for more information!

Rotary Dental Mission

Thanks to all for volunteering for the March Trip to Mexico. The Rotary Dental Mission was amazing.  We had the largest group of providers we've ever had.  We saw 135 patients in 2 days and most patients were able to have multiple treatments (mosting cleanings and fillings or extractions).  We had 2 dentists from Mexico, 3 hygienists from California (2 from Orange County and 1 from Nevada County) and 5 dentists from Northern California (3 from Nevada County and 2 from Yuba County).  I've attached a few photos for you to check out!  We're nailing down a date for October and I'll let you know as soon as it's confirmed.

Thanks for your help!

 

 

 

Many thanks to the incredible Dental Hygienists who volunteered for the SF Give Kids a Smile Day at Southeast Health Center on Feb. 6th, 2009. These amazing hygienists volunteered their Friday to provide prophys, give oral health instruction to parents, and apply Fluoride Varnish to many children who had never seen a dental provider previously.

Kudos to the following hygienists for giving back to the community!!: Rita Felix, Felicia McCarthy, Jaynie Kirby, Diane Slover, Paulon Lee, Sarah Harrah, Sonia Cohn, Wende Intosh, Elizabeth Grinnel, Michael Long, Ana Serrano, Ynonne Lane, Karen Lee, Geralyn Hurney, Steven Quan, Susan Hellums.

SF Dental Hygiene
Component Volunteer Dental Screening

 

We had a  lot of fun at our most recent SF Dental Hygiene Component Volunteer Dental Screening at Wu Yee Family Resource Center on  Saturday July 18, 2009!   Together we screened 61 HeadStart Children  age 2 - 4 years old, and placed Fluoride Varnish on 54 children!!  29% of the children had visible decay.  The breakdown in decay rate was:  Class I (no decay) 43 children, Class II (beginning decay) 12 children, Class III (severe decay) 6 children.    I want to thank some really great people who were not only dedicated hygienists, but so kind and sweet to the little guys who came by. We had  several children who initially refused, but eventually after watching a while, decided they might try!  It was so great to see these little  people have a happy dental experience!

 

Thank you so much to:  Heather Steich, Jeremy Scheckengost, Gwen Lang, Bianca Wu, Paulon Lee, Wendy Leung and Nikita Yefimova as well as our highschool intern, Janice Sanchez, who helped keep papers straight.   We couldn't have done this important health screening without you dedicated souls!! Kudos to you!

Sincerely,
Margaret Fisher, R.D.H.A.P., B.S.
Oral Health Consultant
CHDP Child Health & Disability Prevention Program
City and County of San Francisco
Department of Public Health
30 Van Ness Avenue, Suite 210
San Francisco, CA  94102
(415) 575-5719
(415) 558-5905  FAX
email:    margaret.fisher@sfdph.org